Head and Neck Cancer Market "Will Quadruple" by 2024

The treatment market for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (head and neck cancer) will expand almost fourfold from $386 million in 2014 to $1.53 billion by 2024, according to research and consulting firm GlobalData.

The company’s latest report states that the major drivers of this growth include the launch of multiple premium-priced therapies for recurrent and metastatic disease, led by immuno-oncology products such as Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Opdivo and Merck & Co.’s Keytruda, which are anticipated to enter the head and neck cancer market in late 2016 and 2017 respectively.

“Monoclonal antibodies targeting programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) receptor or programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), including Opdivo, Keytruda, and durvalumab, have generated much excitement in the medical community, with their promising early data and good patient responses," commented Globaldata's oncology analyst Amy Yip.

“GlobalData expects a high patient uptake for these drugs when they are approved, with Keytruda appearing as the market leader in the head and neck cancer space. This is due to its early launch in first-line therapy for recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, allowing it to garner a larger target patient pool compared with Opdivo, which is anticipated to launch only in the second-line setting.”

GlobalData forecasts that Keytruda will achieve peak sales in head and neck cancer treatment of almost $500 million by 2024 in the seven major markets

OpportunityAnalyzer: Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma – Opportunity Analysis and Forecast to 2024